IMBODEN RACE General Information Country: USA Gender: M Height: 173 Weight: 61 Handedness: Left-handed Date of birth: 1993-04-17 License: 17041993004 Further Personal Information Family Partner Ysaora Thibus Residence New York, NY, USA Occupation Athlete, Model Languages English Sport Specific Information When and where did you begin this sport? He began fencing at age nine. Why this sport? "I was in a park in Atlanta [in Georgia, United States of America] playing with a sword. I had always loved anything to do with knights, and someone came up to my parents and said, 'Hey, he should be fencing'. They took me to a club when I was eight but I was too young, so I made them take me back when I was nine." Club / Team Tim Morehouse Fencing Club: New York, NY, USA Name of coach Stefano Cerioni [personal], ITA; Maurizio Zompa [personal], ITA; Greg Massialas [national] Training Regime He added running to his training programme during the COVID-19 pandemic. "Lockdown hit when I was staying with my physical trainer in California. The gyms were closed and we were dying to get back to moving but there was also an urge to do something different. Suddenly, it was, 'Let me try this thing that I'm awful at'. And then I committed myself to it. I thought this is a way for me to get into that space where there's pain and an urge to advance." Handedness Left International Debut Year 2009 Competing for United States General Interest Nicknames The Face of Fencing (teamusa.org, 19 Oct 2015) Hobbies Music, DJing, the arts. (fashionweekdaily.com, 10 Apr 2020; teamusa.org, 10 Sep 2016) Most influential person in career Coach Jed Dupree. (Athlete, 30 Nov 2011) Hero / Idol US basketballer Michael Jordan. (olympicchannel.com, 01 Jan 2016) Sporting philosophy / motto "Fencing is the best sport in the world because it's a mix of both the mental and physical." (olympicchannel.com, 01 Feb 2016) Other sports During his youth he won a state championship in BMX racing in the United States of America. (teamusa.org, 10 Sep 2016) Milestones In the 2014/15 season he became the first US male athlete to win an overall World Cup title in fencing. (teamusa.org, 05 Aug 2015) Famous relatives His partner Ysaora Thibus has represented France in fencing. She won a team bronze and an individual silver medal in foil at the 2018 World Championships in Wuxi, People's Republic of China. She was also a member of the French foil teams that placed fourth at the 2019 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary and at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. (SportsDeskOnline, 04 May 2021; pianetascherma.com, 31 May 2020; rtl.fr, 09 May 2019; instyle.com, 16 Jan 2018) Ambitions To compete at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (fashionweekdaily.com, 10 Apr 2020) Other information PROTEST PROBATION In August 2019 he was placed on 12-month probation by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee after he took a knee on the medal podium during the ceremony for the team foil event at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru. "The reason that I knelt at an international competition is because the country that I represent doesn't reflect me anymore. It doesn't reflect the people within it and, as a person who is not of colour, not affected by gun violence or necessarily dealing with immigration right now, it's important for me to have a voice and support those people." In August 2020 he joined a protests and demonstrations steering committee that comprised of 44 US athletes lobbying for a change to the Olympic Charter's stance on protests and demonstrations made by athletes at Olympic Games sites. He also serves on the council of Everytown, an anti-gun violence organisation, and has participated in protests against gun violence. (theguardian.com, 01 Sep 2020; olympics.nbcsports.com, 28 Aug 2020; fashionweekdaily.com, 10 Apr 2020; bbc.co.uk, 22 Aug 2019; Twitter profile, 10 Aug 2019) FENCING COUPLE He met his partner, French fencer Ysaora Thibus, at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. She moved to the United States of America to live with him in 2017. "If he [Race] offers me advice, I am always ready to listen. After all he is world number one [in May 2019] so I imagine his advice is not bad. In general we make a good couple, in sport and in life." (rtl.fr, 09 May 2019) FUTURE PLANS After he retires from fencing, he hopes to work with underprivileged children interested in fencing, and pursue his love for the arts. "One of the big things I want to do is start a foundation to help kids fence who aren't from affluent backgrounds. I want to get more into the arts. It's something I've always been passionate about. I'm very interested in acting and being behind the camera." (fashionweekdaily.com, 10 Apr 2020) LEAVING UNIVERSITY In 2012 he accepted a scholarship to study at St John's University in New York, NY, United States of America. He decided to drop out in 2013 to focus on fencing and his modelling career, as National Collegiate Athletic Association [NCAA] eligibility rules meant he was unable to receive payment for work as an amateur athlete. "Given the time and energy necessary to pursue modelling work, I couldn't afford to do it unpaid. So I swallowed hard and accepted my reality. I wanted to fence, build my modelling career and earn an education. To remain an amateur, I had to choose two out of three. I didn't have a choice. Fencing was my life. Modelling was my livelihood." (latimes.com, 24 Jun 2018; theplayerstribune.com, 14 May 2015; redstormsports.com, 11 Dec 2012) WHAT'S IN A NAME His parents chose his given name based on the character Race Bannon from the 'Jonny Quest' cartoon. (sports.yahoo.com, 26 Jul 2012).